Devil
by walkswithwheels
Summary: "Now he himself had committed the ultimate sin… And now he truly was the devil he always thought he was…" Spoilers for the final ending of Afterbirth Plus! Contains character deaths! One-shot


**Welcome to another Binding of Isaac short story! It has been a while, but with the announcement of new Binding of Isaac content, I thought I would make some new short stories.**

 **As a warning, the story deals with a character's death, and contains spoilers for the ending of Afterbirth + and another ending. It also gives spoilers for upcoming content and lore for Binding of Isaac. If you do not wish to be spoiled, turn back.**

 **As usual, I do not own Binding of Isaac, and see the author's notes for details.**

* * *

 **Devil**

The knife clattered to the ground, blood gleaming on the tip. Even more of the red sticky substance dripped onto the floor.

Isaac stared at the weapon, letting out a deep sigh.

Everything was done…

This was done…

No more pain…

No more sorrow…

No more fear…

His mother was gone…

He was finally free…

Yet…

Isaac clapped his hands against the side of his face.

Shock entered his widened eyes.

Isaac stared at the shadow of his mother lying on the ground, and a realization came rushing into his mind.

What had he done?

He had just taken another's life…

Not just anyone's, but his own mother's…

It didn't matter that she was trying to kill him as a sacrifice…

That she was constantly harming him and causing him grief…

Now he himself had committed the ultimate sin…

And now he truly was the devil he always thought he was…

Tears threatened to spill from Isaac's eyes as he crept closer to the body.

If only he could reverse this somehow…

If only he could tell his mother he didn't really mean it…

If only he could have made her stop her misdeeds…

Would things have been different?

Isaac simply stood, trying desperately to stop the tears that wished to move on their own.

But then…

The body's eyes suddenly opened.

And Isaac resisted the urge to scream.

The eyes were glowing red, as red as the blood on the wretched knife.

And they stared straight at him, giving a silent accusation.

Isaac found himself shaking.

Within another few minutes, a scream left his mouth.

Had his mother come back somehow?

Was she even more intent on killing him?

And now she knew his techniques…

He had no means of defense now…

Perhaps all he could do was meet his fate…

Isaac crumpled into a heap.

Red, glowing, eyes.

Like the devil he had become.

No, like the devil he always knew he was.

Isaac glanced up, as if the ceiling would somehow give him answers.

A white light flashed, seemingly coming from an open area Isaac was sure hadn't been there before. The light illuminated everything, almost blinding.

Isaac found the courage to blink.

Did that light mean his mother had somehow found her way to eternal peace?

Or that a devil like him could do so?

Suddenly, Isaac was alerted to a buzzing sound.

It didn't take him long to realize that the sound was coming from flies.

And the flies now circled him.

Yet there had been no flies before…

Were they from his mother?

Or were they from _him?_

But if the flies were from him…

Then wouldn't that mean…

The light from above suddenly shone on Isaac, sending a silent message.

And then everything disappeared.

In a locked chest, cold, dark, and cramped…

Isaac took his last breaths…

As he let himself slowly succumb to darkness, he knew what others would find.

They would find his remains, the remains of a devil.

* * *

 **Author's notes:**

 **-So this story was actually inspired by a fan modification of Binding of Isaac called Antibirth. Antibirth introduced new enemies, music, and areas to the game. Most importantly, the modification revolved around finding three knife pieces. If the player discovered these items, they would be taken to a secret area unique to Antibirth. Clearing this area unlocked the ending novelized here.**

 **-The reason I chose to do this story was because of some upcoming content. It was recently revealed that Antibirth would become an official part of the Binding of Isaac canon. Antibirth would be renamed Repentance, featuring even more content. Furthermore, the modification itself would be finished and polished, since the original Antibirth was left incomplete. So I thought I had to do something in honor of the fan project that inspired Repentance, and this story was born.**

 **-Antibirth has one of the most confusing endings ever seen in Binding of Isaac, with many different interpretations of what is going on. I was confused as well, and mostly ignored it until I saw the final ending in Afterbirth +. Then, I realized it was pretty easy to combine this ending with Antibirth's, since everything could neatly be chalked up to another one of Isaac's dying hallucinations. It works well from a gameplay perspective too, because Antibirth was becoming an official part of Binding of Isaac, and thus would be combined with what was already revealed.**

 **-Finally, the devil motif used in this story also has to do with the final ending shown in Afterbirth +. In this ending, it is shown that Isaac believes himself to be a devil and a sinner. He certainly would be seen as such if he truly did kill his own mother. I also noticed that when Isaac's mother's eyes open, they are the same color as the boss Mega Satan's. And since Mega Satan is a reference to the devil, the comparison and theme was easy to weave into the story.**


End file.
